HUNTINGTON BEACH, Calif., Oct. 20, 2009 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- BJ's Restaurants, Inc. (Nasdaq:BJRI) today announced the opening of its newest restaurant in Concord, California on October 19, 2009. The new BJ's Restaurant & Brewhouse is located at the intersection of Contra Costa Blvd. and Willow Pass Road at the 1.3 million square foot Sunvalley Mall. The restaurant is approximately 9,000 square feet and contains seating for approximately 290 guests and features BJ's extensive menu, including BJ's signature deep-dish pizza, award-winning handcrafted beer and famous Pizookie(R) dessert. BJ's highly detailed, contemporary decor and unique video statement, including several high definition flat panel televisions, creates a high energy, fun and family-friendly dining environment for everyone to enjoy. Hours of operation are from 11:00 a.m. to 12:00 midnight Sunday through Thursday and 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 a.m. Friday and Saturday.

"We are very excited to open our seventh new restaurant for 2009 in Concord," commented Jerry Deitchle, Chairman and CEO. "The Concord restaurant is our second restaurant in the East Bay area of Northern California, joining our highly successful Newark, CA restaurant that opened last year. Opening day sales in Concord were very strong. We currently have three additional restaurants under construction that are expected to open before Thanksgiving (Carlsbad, CA; San Rafael, CA; and Hurst, TX). Assuming they open as expected, we will achieve our stated goal to increase our total restaurant operating weeks by approximately 15% for the full year of 2009. Investors are reminded that the actual number and timing of new restaurant openings for any given period is subject to a number of factors outside of the Company's control, including weather conditions and factors under the control of landlords, contractors and regulatory/licensing authorities.

BJ's Restaurants, Inc. currently owns and operates 89 casual dining restaurants under the BJ's Restaurant & Brewery, BJ's Restaurant & Brewhouse or BJ's Pizza & Grill brand names. BJ's restaurants offer an innovative and broad menu featuring award-winning, signature deep-dish pizza complemented with generously portioned salads, appetizers, sandwiches, soups, pastas, entrees and desserts. Quality, flavor, value, moderate prices and sincere service remain distinct attributes of the BJ's experience. The Company operates several microbreweries which produce and distribute BJ's critically acclaimed handcrafted beers throughout the chain. The Company's restaurants are located in California (47), Texas (15), Arizona (5), Colorado (3), Oregon (2), Nevada (3), Florida (5), Ohio (2), Oklahoma (2), Kentucky (1), Indiana (1), Louisiana (1) and Washington (2).